P & C. Contents. SS Rip (formerly HMAS Whyalla) moored at Sorrento Pier, c. 1965

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1 Contents SS Rip (formerly HMAS Whyalla) moored at Sorrento Pier, c Slow Shutter Speed Meeting. November Meeting. Portrait. Humour. A Handy Cheatsheet. Bacchus Marsh and District Photography Club Inc. Not a member yet? Click on the logo below to be taken to our Facebook page. As the group is closed, you will need to click on Join to become a member. Do you have something you would like to contribute to the newsletter? Then please it to me for inclusion. Document created in and exported to PDF using Indesign. Additional content created in Photoshop and Illustrator. All photos appearing in this newsletter remain of their respective owners.

2 The slow shutter speed competition was held at the meeting last Wednesday. While there were quite a few Projected images (EDI), the quantity of print images was a bit disappointing considering how many we have had over the last few months! This In House competition was judged, with some trepidation, by the three members who attended the VAPS judging Course held at the Melbourne Camera Club awhile ago. Various factors were taken into account for the scoring including technical, sharpness, composition, how well the image fitted the theme, etc. Remarkably and without consultation with the other judges, the scores were quite similar for each photo! The scores for each photo were then added together to reach the final score. This made for some very close calls! When it came to the EDI s the judges used the computer monitor to view the images as the projector produces an image that is a bit on the soft side as we are all well aware....and so, the winners were: Prints. 1 st. - Robert Armstrong for his Melbourne at Night photo. 2 nd. - Robert Armstrong for Trentham Falls. 3 rd. - Jill Bell for The Aurora. 1 st. - Matt Page for The Train 2 nd. - Eric Bunn for Big Ben EDI. 3 rd. - Eric Bunn for Charles Bridge There were also three Highly Commended awards given to these images (in no particular order): Judy Archer for her photo Lady in Lamplight. New member Alan Squires for his very creative Calloway Golf Ball. Robert Armstrong for his Fireworks. While we can t show the print images here, the six EDI s can be seen on this page.

3 The November Meeting The November meeting will be held on Wednesday 26 th. at Darley Neighbourhood House at 7:30 PM. The theme is Leading Lines. There will be a Professional photographer as guest judge for this night. The judge will be Andrew Samson from Light and Image studio here in Bacchus Marsh. As such, there is special criteria for EDI images for this night. Please read the information below regarding EDI images. Prints (colour or B&W) are to be brought along on the night as Andrew will cold judge them. For more information on Image and Light and Andrew Samson, Click HERE. Leading Lines EDI Images: All EDI entries are to be ed to me before midnight on the 11 th. November. They will be loaded onto a USB stick and taken to Andrew Samson on the morning of November 12. This is to give Andrew time to study the images before the meeting night. Any images received after the 11 th. November will not be entered into the competition. EDI images brought on the night of the meeting will also not be entered. Only prints can be brought on the night. It should be noted that this sort of arrangement is quite normal for Photography Club competitions where an outside judge is used. Most judges want the prints as well beforehand so we are lucky that Andrew will cold judge them. EDI image size and naming format. All EDI images should be no smaller than 1024 pixels on their longest side. Larger images are acceptable and if necessary I will scale them down, but smaller images, especially those produced at a screen resolution of 72dpi may not scale up successfully, so please try to keep your images to that size. File sizes up to 1.5-2MBytes are acceptable. I know people like to post images to Facebook, etc of around 40-50KBytes and that is fine for that purpose, but please...for a competition, the quality is just not there. Naming your images: It would be appreciated if you could name your images in the following format (It saves me having to do it!): NN_YYYYMM_Title_SS.jpg Where: NN is your membership number in two digit format. YYYYMM is the year and month. Title Your picture title (if it has one). If you don t have a name for it, then make this section Untitled..although it is easy to give it a name! Judges like a title!! SS This simply stands for Set Subject.

4 Identifying Text on your Image. When people post images to the web some like to put an identity mark on their photos, such as a copyright Symbol, watermark, etc. For the purpose of a competition this should be avoided. No Watermarks, Copyright symbols, Names, etc should be on the image regardless of whether it is a digital image or a print. If any images are sent to me with these features on it I will attempt to remove it. If I am unable to successfully remove it without compromising the quality of the image I will request another copy without the feature. But it is easier simply not to put it on the image in the first place. Once again, this is standard for Photography competitions regardless of whether it is a Club, Interclub, State, National or International competition. Competition Etiquette. (Or being nice to the Judge!!) Whilst most judges welcome comments or questions regarding the images (print or digital) it is much preferred that these are left until after he or she has completed the entire judging session. Most judges are happy to receive comments or questions about the images then. Again, leaving comments or questions until after the judging session has finished is standard practice at all competitions...and anyway, it is just a matter of courtesy! Members can enter up to two digital images as well as up to two prints. Number of Entries. Please note that competitions are open to financial members only.

5 The main challenge with portrait photography is, without a doubt, producing a portrait that does not leave the subject looking rigid, anxious, or just simply uncomfortable. A portrait photographer must gain his or her subject s trust to help them loosen up and become actively involved in the sitting. The results will be more natural and the subject will be pleasant to work with. The result will be portraits that are not only attractive but also vibrant with the subject s true nature memorialized in the image. How can the portrait photographer involve their subject in such a way that they will be their most natural self and the photo session completed in an easy and natural manner? Here are five tips for a productive portrait photography session: Occupy the Hands. Portrait photography primarily involves a head and shoulders shot. One of the primary stressors for the subject is what to do with the hands. Giving the person something to hold will keep their mind away from concentrating on their posture, resulting in a much more relaxed piece of work. Since some portraits may be full body photos, including an object that is comfortable but not distracting can put the subject at ease. Use a Chair. For some reason, people are uncomfortable standing in front of a camera. Consequently, portrait photographers will usually have a chair available. A chair could possibly be the handiest tool a photographer can have when taking portrait images. With this prop, there exists more of a casual atmosphere. Know Your Subject. 5 Tips for Becoming more Instinctive with Portrait Photography Your subject has an idea in their mind what a portrait should look like. It is the portrait photographer s responsibility to utilize their professional skills to bring the subject s ideas to reality. Allow some interaction time so you can talk about subjects of interest or about the things your model is passionate about. You will be amazed how that special glint in the eye will come through and their face will light up. As the portrait photographer, you and your subject will interact to create that special mood and ambiance. You will discover that using a handheld camera will allow you to capture unique angles and expressions that you cannot achieve with a fixed location camera. Using these techniques, you will be shifting the attention away from the lights and equipment to concentrating on the person photographed.

6 B Involve Your Subject. The portrait photographer needs to remember that this is the client s portrait and not that of the photographer. Respect for the individuals involved is mandatory. You should be aware of any time constraints the client might have. And you should also have a good understanding as to what the subject wishes. If you are trying something the subject does not understand, be sure to explain why you are taking such actions. You do not want to catch your clients off guard, as that confusion will end up appearing in the final product. Be Prepared. Be sure all equipment is set up and in good working order prior to your subject s arrival. Nothing will raise the level of anxiety more than having the client suffer through times of setting up proper lighting and ensuring everything is working. Find out some general information about the subject of the shoot. What are they anticipating from this session? Is the scene free from external distractions? Allowing the appropriate amount of time for the shoot will prevent rushing to complete the task at hand and will leave the photographer with a much happier customer. In portrait photography, all five tips above are essential if you desire your subjects or clients to be more at ease in front of the camera resulting in the most natural portraits possible. Thanks to Jill Bell for this article. If you have any article of interest please it to me for inclusion.

7 A bit of Humour

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9 Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer - and often the supreme disappointment. Ansell Adams.

10 BM&D PC Slow Shutter EDI Photos Matt Page -Train. Eric Bunn - Big Ben.

11 P & C Robert Armstrong - Fireworks. Eric Bunn - Charles Bridge.

12 P & C Alan Squires - Calloway Golf. Judy Archer - Lady in Lamplight.